Samir Hussein/WireImage(LONDON) -- Britain’s Prince William is trading in his helicopter helmet for his royal crown.

The palace said on Thursday that William, formally known as the Duke of Cambridge, has ended his military career after more than seven years of service and will now focus on royal duties, charity and conservation work.

The 31-year-old prince, and new father to son Prince George with his wife, Kate, completed his final shift as a search-and-rescue pilot with the Royal Air Force on Tuesday, a spokesman said.

What exactly William will do next remains to be seen. The palace left his future opportunities wide open, saying that William is “considering a number of options for public service.”

It does appear, however, that William has found a particular calling in using his position to raise awareness of conservation in Africa. The palace also said on Thursday that William has been named president of a newly created partnership, “United for Wildlife,” that will “tackle the global challenges to the world’s natural resources.”

The prince and Kate are scheduled to attend a charity dinner Thursday night to benefit Tusk Trust, a British charity that funds conservation projects in Africa. The high-profile event will mark Kate’s first official royal engagement since giving birth to the couple’s first son, George, in July.

While mom and dad enjoy a night out, Prince George could be cared for by the same nanny who took care of William and his younger brother, Prince Harry, when they were young.

The U.K.’s Sunday People revealed this week that William and Kate, also 31, have asked former royal nanny Jessie Webb to come out of retirement, at age 71, to care for their son. Webb was photographed Monday stopping with Kate and George at none other than a McDonald’s as the trio made their way back to London.

All of the attention from his parents and new nanny seems to be working for baby George who, this week, flashed his uncle, Prince Harry, a royal smile.

“I’ve literally just seen him,” Harry, 28, told a guest at an awards ceremony for children Wednesday, according to the U.K.’s The Mirror. “It was the first time I’ve seen him smile.”

William, Kate and George are expected to move from Anglesey, where William was based, to their newly renovated home in London’s Kensington Palace “within the next few weeks,” according to the palace.